Back in the Saddle Again

Gene Autrey

In a time

of cars and planes,

cell phones and internet,

how to explain to someone

under fifty the wonder

of the singing cowboy?

But sing they did,

Gene and Roy

sitting tall in the saddle

resplendent in suits of white,

strumming their guitars,

as they sauntered

off into the sunset.

My dad had all Gene’s 78’s,

with their pops and crackles,

the hiss of the needle

dragging heavy over old vinyl.

I found an old Victrola—

the kind you wind up—

to play his records on.

And though dad

rode off long ago

in his own blaze of glory,

his records live on,

Gene’s voice ringing through

the hiss and static of years,

reminder of a time when

the good guy won every gunfight,

always got the girl,

and never missed a note.

February 27, 2021